


SPEECH 



HON. ALEXANDER R. BOTELER, 



OF VIRGINIA, 



ORGANIZATION OF THE HOUSE. 



DBUVBKED IN THE HOUSE OK REPKESENTATIVE3 JANDART 25, 1860. 



., ,^>. ■ ■ 

WASHINGTON, D. C. 

WILLIAM H. MOORE, PRINTER. 
I860. 



\ 



[RKrUBLUiUED KV Rl'.lii llSl .] 



S 1^ E E O H 

(JF 



HUN. ALEXANDER II. I5()TEL1:R. 

ON 

THE ORGANIZATION 0¥ THE HOUSE. 



DELIVERKD I\ THE HOUSE 0¥ REPRESENTATIVES. .lANUARY -'5. 18Wi. 



The House having under consideration the election of Speaker — 

Mr. I30TELER said : Mr. Clerk, I have no set speech to make. I have not come here 
to-daj' with that intention. I have sought the floor simply for the purpose of submitting 
a few suggestive remarks, which, I trust, will serve in some degree to promote the object 
which many here are aincerely desirous of accomplishing — of bringing this discussion to 
a close, and perfecting the organization of the House. Sir, 1 do not stand here this 
morning to make any appeals to the prejudices, the p.-issions, or the sectional pride of 
those who represent that quarter of the Confederacy from whence I came. I have no 
desire to indulge in any pyrotechnic display of " glittering generalities," which, however 
much they may dazzle and amuse, are but illy calculated to bring about a practical 
solution of the difficulty in which we are involved, — for like summer lightning, they 
" play around the head but do not touch the heart." Nor is it my purpose to deal in any 
unjust, ungenerous, or unnecessarily harsh denunciation, of those upon the other side of 
the Chamber, who, claiming to be conservative, are here in the exercise of their undoubted 
rights as Represeutatives, entertaining sentiments utterly adverse from the sentiments 
held by my constituents and myself. I say 1 shall not indulge in any unnecessiirily harsh 
denunciations of them. I recognize the fact that we who are assembled h^TC to dis- 
charge the legitimate duties of legislation devolved upon us by our constituents, coming as 
we do from different and distant portions of this vast Confederacy, some from (lie rugged, 
rock-ribbed hills of the North, some from the ever-blooming plains of the South, some 
with the dust of the distant prairies on their leet, and others with the spray of eitiier 
ocean on their brows, representing interests and opinions as variant as are the latitudes 
iu which we live, must necessarily differ on many points ; that it is not to be expected of 
us there should be perfect uniformity of sentiment, especially in regard to those great 
questions of public concernment which, from time to time, stir up the depths of human 
feeling in our land. But, sir, it is expected, and our country demands, patriotism re- 
quires at our hands, that, coming here as we do under these circumstances, we should 
remember, in the language of a distinguished citizen of py good old State, " that we 
have a country to serve, as well as a party to obey." 

But, sir, what do we behold? "What is the spectacle which this House presents? On 
this side of it, amongst those with whom it has been my pride and my pleasure to act 
in good faith from first to last, whatr have we seen ? Three distinct organizations : a 



Democratic party, a southern Opposition part^-, and an anti-Lecompton party ; for we 
must recognize the last named as a party, since, though insignificant in number, it is 
ver^- potential in its influence. Well, sir, what have they been doing? They know, 
they feel, the country knows, that it la only by a union amongst them all that we can 
beat down the nominee of the Republican party. They profess to be honest in their 
desire to accomplish that, and I know they are honest in their opposition to that nomi- 
nee. But yet, with the majority and with the power in their hands, they have never 
once exercised that power to secure the object which they profess to be anxiously 
desirous of attaining. And why? Because they have allowed their party prejudices 
and their party pride to interfere with their patriotism. There has not been a ballot 
taken since this struggle began, in which there has been a union of the different anti- 
Republican parties; and there will be no election resulting in the success of this 
side of the House unless there is such a union — a cordial and hearty union amongst 
us all. 

Now, sir, let me illustrate our position here. JVe are all on board the same ship, the 
glorious old ship which our fathers built for us. They laid its keel ; they fashioned its 
bulwarks ; they forged the anchor of its hope, and unfurling at ita fore "the flag of the 
free hearts only home," they launched it upon the ocean of national existence ; they 
gave us a chart by which to sail our ship ; that chart is the Constitution ; and we have 
difl'ered heretofore amongst ourselves earnestly, sincerely, openly differed, as freemen 
should differ and will differ, in regard to the construction of our chart and in regard to 
the best mode of working our ship. Some of us have been for sailing her upon this 
tack, some upon that tack ; some have been for taking in a sail, others for shaking out 
a reef. We believe that, under Providence, our ship has been built to be the life-boat 
of the world ; and throughout the progress of the voyage we have been constantly en- 
gaged in saving those who have come on board to us from the wrecks, the rafts, and 
rotton governments of the Old World. We have taken them into our vessel when they 
have been swimming for their lives. We have spread before them the table of our 
bounty; we have saved their lives and have given them an equal participation in the 
profits of our voyage ; yet some of us (and I amongst the number) have seen, and seen 
with surprise and pain, that after they have been brought on board the ship, a portion 
of them have shown a propensity to interfere in the management of it, and we have said 
to them : " We have brought you here to save you, and to make you prosperous, happy, 
and free ; but we are not willing that you shall take hold of the tiller and handle the 
ropes, until you have been here long enough to know one rope from another." And 
this has been a source of honest difference of opinion amongst those on board, whilst all 
of us have loved the old craft, from truck to keel, with all our hearts. Well, sir, thus 
we have voyaged ; and whilst thus differing, what has happened? We have been drift- 
ing towards the breakers ; we have been insensibly drawn towards a lee shore, where 
no light-house sends its friendly ray ! A storm has arisen upon us ; we hear the spirit 
of the tempest shrieking in the shrouds ; clouds of danger, difficulty, and doubt are 
dimming the haven of our hopes, and threatening to burst in desolation over our 
heads! And not only that; but, sir, we see yonder "a band of mutineers" deter- 
mined to take possession of the vessel ; men associated together to dispossess us of our 
rights, and to deprive us of our property, who would thrust us down the hold, and 
batten the hatches over our heads. And yet, in the midst of all these imminent, 
deadly dangers which are threatening the destruction of the ship, we have been en- 
gaged here for weeks past in a disgraceful squabble upon theoretical points of political 
navigation ! 

Now, Mr. Clerk, I ask, is it right, is it reasonable, can we answer to our constituents. 



and to the country, if we continue to allow these pultrj', miserable differences to inter- 
fere with our duty, and to prevent cordial, united action amon^ the conservatives of the 
House against those whom we recognize, and whom we are bound to recognize as our 
common enemy ? 

Sir, I have no practical suggestion to offer; there are older heads than mine here to 
do that; but I do protest against the continuance of this most unnecessary discussion. 
For myself, the House will do me the justice to say that I have possessed my seat in 
silence upon this floor during the seven weary weeks we have been in session, whilst 
this exciting discussion has been going on, and whilst the infamous Abolition outrage 
upon the district I have the honor to represent has been thg fruitful inspiration of almost 
every gentleman who has risen to address the House. Mr. Clerk, I was present at that 
horrible Harper's Ferry raid ; I was a witness to that abominable outrage: I saw the 
blood of my friends shed in the streets of Harper's Ferry ; and if there is a man here 
who has a right to discuss that subject, it is myself; and yet I have forborne. 1 have 
remained silent for various reasons, iiot the least of which is, that the distinguished 
Senator before me (Mr. Masox) is en^ged in the investigation of the facts connected 
with the whole affair, and will present them fully and fairly, at the proper time, before 
the country, to leave it judge of them, after which I shall avail myself of a suitable op- 
portunity to mention some circumstances to the House concerning that foray which I 
wish the country to know, and which justice to my constituents requires that it shall 
know from me. 

There is yet another reason which, I must confess, has also influenced me in this 
matter. I know (and I have been painfully conscious of it whenever my mind has re- 
verted to that dark day) that when the heart feels most, the tongue refuses to perform 
its wonted task. 

And, sir, when I have heard gentlemen on the other side of the floor stand up and 
derisively refer to that infamous outrage, I have been hardly able to retain my seat and 
refrain from the' expression of my indignation in terms which would not have sounded 
parliamentary. My mind, sir, has again and again, during this discussion, gone back 
to that gloomy October evening, when I stood by the side of a friend, and laid my hand 
upon his brow where the death-damp was gathering, while the blood was gushing 
from his noble heart, aud I have been often disposed to say, in apology for my forbear- 
ance : 

"Oil! pardon me, thou bleeding jiiece of earth, 
That I am meek and gentle with these butchers! " 
For I tell yon, sir, that in my opinion, the leaders of the Abolition party, who are seek- 
ing to control the organization of this House, and to obtain possession of the Govern- 
ment, are as much the murderers of my friends at Harper's Ferry as were old John Brown 
and his deluded followers ; and I think that the committee engaged in the investigation 
in my State, and the investigation on the part of the Senate, will prove that the agita- 
tion of the slavery question by the great leaders of the Republican party has been the 
direct cause of the Harper's Ferry invasion. 

I tell you further, sir, the Commonwealth of Virginia has come to the determination 
that this shall be the end of it ; that this slavery agitation shall cease, so far as she is 
concerned; that her territory'shall be protected from a repetition of that bloody raid. 
She has taken some indemnity for the past and means to have security for the future. 
And, sir, to make her determination good, she has buckled on her armor, and her borders 
are now bristling with bayonets, for she feels compelled to take the guardianship of her 
rights and her honor into her own hands. Heretofore she has trusted to the tie of con- 
sanguinity ; heretofore she has relied upon the linked shields of all the States for her 



6 

protection ; hut, sir, ;it a raomoiit when she (ire;inic(l not of it, she has been smitten upon 
the cheek. Unr honored old mother has been striirk a blow which has roused her 
children from their false security and rallied them to her rt'scuo. "\Vo now discover 
that we must depend npon our own right arm to protect our 8tate from further outrage, 
so long as there remains a " Republican" organization in Congress and the country. 
And, men of the North, why will you persist in maintaining that organization? What 
good do yon expect to effect by it? You formed it, so you have said, for the sole pur- 
pose of making Kansas a free State. You have Kansas, and when she comes into this 
Union, she M'ill come in " free." If there be any other purpose that you expect to ac- 
complish by it. it must be to transfer your " irrepressible conflict " from the Territories 
to the States. * 

But. gentlemen of the other side, I know there are some among you who profess to be 
conservative, and are conservative, as compared with the moving spirits of your party. 
The distinguished gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Corwix) who sits before me, and who has 
entertained ns and held this House for two days in listening admiration, by his intel- 
lectual efforts, claims to be — I wish he -a ere so in|^ality — " the leader of the Republican 
j>arty :" but how few are they who gather around him, who will recognize him as their 
leader, and will endorse the sentiments he has uttered here yesterdny and the day before. 
When I look .'it him. when I see him there amongst them — a triton amongst the min- 
nows — when I see him there, sir, my mind goes back to the literature of my boyish days, 
and 1 remember how it was that once u[)on a time Gulliver, in his Travels, laid himself 
down to sleep in the country of the Lilliputians; how the pigmies climbed upon his 
person and wound their tiny chains about him ; how they bound his hands, and so led 
him, a spectacle of wonder, through the land. Oh, sir, if I could but make such an ap- 
peal to that distinguished gentleman as would awaken a responsive feeling in his heart, 
its patriotic throbs would burst the bonds which bind him to the earth ; he would stand 
erect in the frightened presence of his diminutive associates, and would march forth with 
a firm tread from the loM' miasmatic marshes of sectionalism, and join us here upon the 
high ground of nationality, where the flag of the Union floats " with not a stripe erased 
or polluted, or a single star obscured.'' [Applause from the Democratic benches and in 
the galleries.] And the leader (Mr. Sheuman) whom they recognize, the leader who 
bears their banner, I listened to his explanation, or rather his attempt at explanation, 
made a few days since, with sincere sympathy for him. In my very sonl I ])ity him I 
And it is with wonder and amazement that I behold a gentleman with the traits which 
that gentleman is said to have — and he must have noble traits who, during so many 
weeks of conflict, can keep friends around him in unbroken ranks, persisting in their 
efforts to place him in the third position under our Government — to see such a gentle- 
juan permit himself to remain for one hour more before the country, as he is, according 
to his own account of himself, and the account his friends have given of him, in connec- 
tioa with the Helper Bopk. 

What has he told the House? What has his friend who nominated him (Mr. Couwix) 
lold this House? That he signed the recommendation of the Helper Book at the solici- 
tation of a friend who came to him and asked him to sign it; that he took the precau- 
tion to inquire of the friend whether there would be anything objectionable in the com- 
pilation, and was assured that there would not be ; that the'^book would be prepared by 
a committee, &c. Well, sir, what has that committee done? They have put forth a 
book under the sanction of Mr. Sherman's name, which is everywhere denounced as ob- 
jectionable, and which is, unciuestionably, a most infamous publication ; a book w'hich 
he himself intimates his objection to, and, as 1 understand, desires an opportunity to de- 
nounce as it deserves. They have deceived him : they have betrayed him ; they have 



i 

made him their victim, tlieir dupe, ay, their tool ; and he submits to it all! Yes, sir, it 
is admitted that they have deceived him, for he allows the inference to be made that he 
does not endorse this most infamous Helper book. I am told, indeed, that many gentle- 
men on the other side — if the gentleman from Missouri will withdraw his resolution — 
one after the other will rise and denounce that book. That is what they say in pri- 
vate. They are ready to denounce it now, and well they may be ; for, sir, I would like 
to see a man in the American Congress who would rise in his place and endorse the 
sentiments of that book, after all that has occurred within the last three months. If 
any man should do so here in our presence, we would see a traitor standing in our 
midst ! 

Mr. Clerk, the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Shbkman) still occupies his position. Week 
after week he has occupied it, and Heaven only knows how long he will continue to 
hold on to it. But his chance is gone. I tell him, in all candor, that he cannot be 
elected to the Speakership, and is not fit for the position ; not meaning, however, to say 
that his private virtues and personal graces do not qualify him to fill that chair. But 
from his association with this abominable Helper book, and the manner in which he has 
been persistently pressed at this particular time, he never can be Speaker, and never should 
be called upon to preside over the deliberations of this bod}'. To be elected at all, it 
must be by means of the plurality rule ; and a vote upon the plurality rule, it is under- 
stood, must be a sneaking vote for Sherman. Now, sir, that plurality rule never can 
come to a vote. I do not hesitate to say that I was one of those, after the discussion 
arose in the house the other day, who sought out the paper referred to by the gentleman 
from Indiana, (Mr. Colfax,) and that I placed my name to it, pledging myself to stand 
here day and night to oppose 6y all lawful means the adoption of the plurality rule ; and 
I will stay here in this Hall, eat here, drink here, live here, and, if necessary, die here 
before I give my sanction, as a Representative* from Virginia, to that rule, when I am 
satisfied that its adoption will result in the election of John Sherman as Speaker of this 
House. 

Mr. COLFAX. Will the gentleman allow me to ask him a question ? 1 do not wish 
to interfere without the gentleman's consent. 

Mr. BOTELER. Certainly. 

Mr. COLFAX. Suppose any number of gentlemen, after it was organized, were satis- 
fied that an appropriation bill reported by the Committee of Ways and Meams contained 
an appropriation of money which would probably be used by the Federal Administration 
for corrupt purposes — I do not say that would be ; I only put the case as a suppositious 
one — would you justify us in signing a written agreement, binding ourselves to each 
other that we would, by a factious opposition, prevent any vote ever being taken upon 
it, and thus prevent a majority from adopting it? If so, all legislation could be thus 
arrested. 

Mr. BOTELER. You have to meet your own responsibility to your constituency, and 
I am responsible to mine. I can go back to mine, and hold up my head, with the full 
assurance in my heart that the position I have taken during this protracted struggle for 
the Speakership will be endorsed by every one of my constituents whose good opinion 
is worth an effort to retain. You can do the same. 

But I have yet to learn that that is a majority side of the House. I am going upon the 
premises that this is the majority side of this House, and that the " factious" course is 
pursued by the otiier side. That is the " factious '' side. True, it is a side with seven- 
teen States represented by it ; but I see not a single southern man affiliating with them — 
not one. I look upon the flag they carry, and I cannot recognize upon it the escutcheon 
of a single State south of Mason and Dixon's line. 



But, Mr. Clerk, 1 ato sorry I have been betr.ayed into these extended remarks. I as- 
.-nire gentlemen I rose not to bring the torch of discord among the members of the 
House, but to offer the olive branch of peace. I rose to make an appeal to gentlemen 
upon this side; to make an appeal to my distinguished friend from Ohio (Mr. Corwin) 
before me ; to my friends from Pennsylvania and New Jersey, some of whom were old 
college-mates, and whom I had not met before in twenty years, but whom I see now, to 
my great regret, upon that side of the House, voting and acting against the interests of 
ray State. I came here, sir, to stand by those gentlemen from Pennsylvania and New 
.Jersey in their rights and interests. I came here a tariif man, though not a protective 
man for protection's sake ; not in fiivor of a high protective tariff, yet ready to lock my 
shield with theirs, and fight out the great question of protection to their interests. But 
I see them arrayed against my interests and the interests of my constituents ; and how 
can they expect that I shall be found fighting zoalouslj- with them for their interests ? 
Sir, I have said that I am in favor of protection. I desire that every man in this coun- 
try of ours, from the Aroostook to the Gulf of Mexico — no matter what his occupation 
may be, whether he shoves the plane or throws the shuttle, whether he works in the 
mine, or, like,, myself, belongs to the great agricultural interests of the country — shall 
feel that his Government is with him and not against him. I would have every farmer 
throughout the land feel, as he scatters the gulden grain in the furrows, that, next to the 
Providence of Almighty God, who sends the sunshine and the shower, the seed time and 
the harvest, this Government of ours discriminates /o?- his interests, and not against them. 
I came here to vindicate that principle side by side with those whom I believed to be con- 
servative men from the great States of Pennsylvania andNew Jersey, (the old battle-ground 
of the Revolution, where my fathers stood \\i'ith theirs shoulder to shoulder, in the snows 
of Trenton and the hot sands of Monmouth,) to vindicate that great principle of protec- 
tion to American industry, in accordance ^fith the necessities of the times. But I find 
you rallying behind a sectional banner, and giving aid and comfort to that intolerant 
sectional organization of the North, the fundamental principle of which is opposition to 
slavery — to the chartered rights and vested interests of Virginia — I cannot, therefore, 
expect that any appeal I make to you will be listened to. 

Mr. HALE. Will the gentleman from Virginia allow me to ask him a question? 

Mr. BOTELER. I certainly will permit the gentleman to ask me a question. 

Mr. HALE. You say you find us arrayed against your rights and interests, and that 
you came here to endeavor to promote the interests of Pennsylvania. 1 would like to 
know what rights or interests of Vii-ginia the Pennsylvania members have attacked 
on this floor, or what rights they propose to attack? We have stood by you, as I un- 
derstand. In your Harper's Ferry foray, as you call it, Pennsylvania acted the part 
of a sister State, according to the testimony of Governor Wise himself, and returned 
your fugitives from justice. Pennsylvania, sir, has always done her duty to her sister 
States ; and I defy any gentleman from Virginia, or any other gentleman upon this 
tioor, to show that in any respect Pennsylvania has failed in her duty to any sister State 
in any manner whatever. When gentlemen deal in general charges like these, they 
ought to specify wherein we are interfering with th«ir rights. 

.Mr. BOTELER. I recognize the fact — and it is a fact which affords me pleasure, a 
fai't of which every Pcnnsylvanian may well be proud — that her Governor did his 
duty fully, fairly, faithfully in returning to Virginia the fugitives from her justice, and 
that he was sustained by the people of Pennsylvania in that patri^itic act; aud, sir, I 
came here prepared to testify to the State of Pennsylvania my grateful appreciation of 
ihe conduct of her Governor. I am still grateful to the people of Pennsylvania, whom, 
] }ielieve, are misrepresented upon this floor bji- those who have from first to last acted 



9 

■with the other side, to -whom, however, there may be some exceptions. [Referring to 
those -who had voted for Mr. Gilmeu.] 

The gentleman asks me when he had acted contrary to the interests of Virginia ? 
You have done it, sir, on every ballot in which you have given your vote for a sectional 
candidate, whom the people of Virginia must regard, if elected to that chair, as having 
been forced upon the country against their wishes, and against the protestation of every 
man, woman, and child within her borders. 

Now, sir, a word to Massachusetts. 

Mr. HALE. I would ask the gentleman if we are not the best judges of what our con- 
stituents desire. 

Mr. VALLANDIGHAM. I rise to a question of order. I object to this interruption. 

Mr. HALE. Has the gentleman the right to say — 

(Loud cries of " Order ! " from the Democratic benches.) 

Mr. HALE. Has the gentleman the right to say — 

(Cries of " Order ! " " Order 1 ") 

Mr. VALLANDIGHAM. I insist upon the point of order. 

Mr. BOTELER. The election which returned these gentlemen here took place *■ 
month before the John Brown raid. The people of the North know, they must know' 
now, thej^ cannot fail now to see, what is the inevitable tendency of this slavery agi- 
tation. They have been told by you, the politicians, you the leaders — and we have 
allowed ourselves to be deluded by the syren song sung in our ears— that you do not 
intend to interfere with slavery within the States. Personally, I believe you do not. 
Personally, there is not a leader among you all — not even Fred Douglass — who can be 
found with courage enough to come into the southern States and interfere with slavery 
there. But, from year to year, you have beaten the drum of abolitionism in all the 
highways and byways of the North. From your pulpit and press and forum, in season 
and out of season, you have preached to the rising generation that slavery is a curse ; 
and that anti-slavery sentiment has stimulated others, less careful of their personal 
safety, to come among us with a hostile intent, to steal our slaves and incite them to 
insurrection. 

I can illustrate this by an incident which occurred in my own county the other day. 
That poor wretch, Coppie, a week or two before his execution, stood at the window of 
his prison, pressing his brow against the iron bars across it, looking out intently in the 
street at the happy groups of negroes assembled the*e, and after some time, he turned 
away and sobbed. A friend asked why he sobbed. "Sir," said he, "I have seen, day 
after day, the negroes in your streets, and they are better clad than the laboring people 
of the northern States ; they are well cared for in every way, and see, oh ! see how 
happy!" Said mj^ frifen'd, '" What did you expect?" "Oh," said he, "I have been 
taught to believe that they were downtrodden and oppressed, and were ready to clutch 
ut liberty, but they refused it when we offered them the boon." 

Now, Mr. Clerk, who is responsible for this? On whose head is the blood of Coppie? 
There was not a man amongst the Harper's Ferry insurgents, except John Brown, who 
was not born since 1830, and who did not grow up under the influence of abolition 
preaching. This, sir, is a significant fact, which I commend to the thinking portion of 
my countrymen. There was not one of them who had not breathed the atmosphere of 
abolition, and who had not his mind poisoned against the South by such teachings. 
You do not care for the negro. You admit the fact. It is a most miserable hobby 
upon which you have ridden into power. Therefore, in the name of our common 
country, I demand that you disband your anti-slavery party and take down your pirati- 
cal flag ! 



10 

But a word now to Massachusetts: When, sir, I have heard the name of a gentle- 
man called here, daj' after day, first on the roll — a great, historic name, (Mr. Adams) — 
I have been reminded of the "Old Bay State" in her prouder day in the heroic age of 
the Republic, and I have also been reminded of a historical incident connected with 
the county in which I live — that county selected by John Brown for his bloody raid — 
and feel that I have a right to make an especial appeal to the Massachusetts delega- 
tion here, if they are not deaf to the voice of consanguinity, and if they are, I appeal 
from them to their people on this question ; I demand of them to come up to the rescue 
of the country now as they did in the good old times of their revolutionary fathers. 

Sir, the district which I represent and the county where I live — that county made 
famous by the raid of Brown — was the first, the very first in all the South, to send 
succor to Massachusetts in the time of her direst necessity! In one of the most beau- 
tiful spots in that beautiful country, within rifle shot of ray residence, at the base of a 
hill where a glorious spring leaps out into sunlight from beneath the gnarled roots of 
a thunder-riven oak, there assembled on the 10th of July, 1775, the very firsthand of 
southern men who marched to the aid of Massachussetts. They met there, then, and 
their rallying cry was, "a bee-line for Boston." That l^eautiful and peaceful valley — 
the "valley of the Shenandoah" — had never been polluted by the footsteps of a foe; 
for even the Indians themselves had, according to tradition, kept it free from the in- 
cursion of their enemies. It wa,s the hunting range and neutral ground of the abori- 
gines. The homes of those who lived there then were far beyond the reach "of danger. 
But Boston was beleagured! The hearths of your fathers were threatened with pol- 
lution, and the fathers of those whom I represent rallied to their protection — 
"They left the plow-share in tho mould, 
Their flocks and herds without a fold, 
The sickle in the unshorn grain, 
Their corn half-garnered on the plain, 
And mustered in their simple dress, 
For wrongs of yours to seek redress." 
Thus they mustered around the spring I speak of. and from thence they made their 
" Bee-line for Boston." Before they marched, they made a pledge that all who sur- 
vived would assemble there fifty years after that day. It is my pride and pleasure to 
remember that I, though but a chiid then, was present at the spring when the fifty 
years rolled round. Three aged, feeble, tottering men— the survivors of that glorious 
band of one hundred and twenty-^were all who were left to keep their tryste, and be 
faithful to the pledge made fifty years before to their companions, the bones of most 
of whom had been left bleaching on your northern hills. 

Sir I have often heard from the last survivor* of that band of patriots, the incident? 
of their first meeting and their march; how they made some six hundred miles in thirty 

^ays twenty miles a day — and how, as they neared the camp at Cambridge, their 

point of destination, Washington, who happened to be making a reconnoissance in the 
neio-hborhood, saw them approaching, and recognising the linsey-woolsey hunting shirts 
of old Virginia, galloped up to meet and greet them to the camp; how, when he saw 
their captain, his old companion-in-arms, Hugh Stephenson, who had stood by his side 
at the Great Meadows, on Braddock's fatal field, and in many an Indian campaign— and 
who reported himself to his commander as ''from the right bank of the Potomac" — ho 
sprang from his horse and clasped his old friend and fellow-soldier with both hands. 
He spoke no word of welcome; but the eloquence of silence told what his tongue could 
not articulate. He moved along the ranks, from man to man, shaking the hand of each, 
and all the while— as my informer told me— the big tears were seen rolling down his 
cheeks. 



* The late Major Henry Bedingor, of Berkley county, Virginia. 



11 

Aye, sir, Washington wept! And why did the glorious soul of Washington swell 
with emotion? Why did he weep? Sir, they were tears of joy ! and he wept because 
he saw that the cause of Massachussetts was practically the cause of Virginia; because 
he saw that her citizens recognized the great principles involved in the contest. These 
Virginia volunteers had come spontaneously; they had come in response to the words 
of her Henry, that were leaping like live thunder through the land, telling the people 
of Virginia that they must %ht, and fight for Massachusetts. They had come to rally 
with Washington to defend your fathers' firesides, to protect your mothers' homes from 
harm. 

Well, Mr. Clerk, the visit has been returned! John Brown selected that very county, 
whose citizens went so promptly to the aid of the North when the North needed aid, 
as the most appropriate place in all the South to carry out the doctrines of the "irre- 
pressible conflict;" and as was mentioned in the .""enate yesterday, the rock where 
Leeman fell at Harper's Ferry, was the very rock over which Morgan and his men 
marched a few hours after Stephenson's command had crossed the river some ten 
miles further up at Shepherdstown. 

Sir, may this historical reminiscence rekindle the embers of patriotism in our hearts!' 
Why should this nation of ours be rent in pieces by this irrepressible conmct? But is it 
irrepressible? Ah, sir, if it be, the battle will not be fought out upon this floor. For 
when the dark day comes, as come it may, when this question, that now divides and 
agitates the hearts of the people, shall be thrust from the forum of debate, to be de- 
cided by the bloody arbitrament of the sword, it will be the saddest day for us and all 
mankind that the sun of Heaven has ever shone upon. 

I trust, Mr. Clerk, that this discussion will now cease. I trust that all will make 
an eff"ort, by balloting, and by a succession of ballotings. to organize the House. I 
trust that we will go on in our efforts, day after day, until we do effect an organiza- 
tion, and proceed to perform the duties which we were sent here to discharge; that 
the great heart of our country will cease to pulsate with the anxiety which now causes 
it to throb; and that we will each, in our own appropriate sphere, do what we can to 
make ourselves more worthj- of the inestimable blessings which a good God has given 
us, and which can only be enjoyed by a. free, a virtuous, and united people. (Applause.) 



From the National Intelligencer. 

-A_IT IKrCIIDEIsrT OF IT'T'S. 

The beautiful incident ol' our Revolutionary liistory so touchingly related 
by the Hon. Mr. Boteler, of Virginia, in his speech in the House of Repre- 
sentatives on the 25th ultimo, interested the esteemed Mrs. Sigourney, of 
Connecticut, so deeply that she gave to the story the attractive form of 
poetry, for the graces of which her fine genius is so widely known, and has 
so often been exemplified in our columns. Many friends, having perused 
the effusion ifi the hands of Mr Boteler, insisted on giving it to the public, 
and it is therefore subjoined, together with her letter to Mr. Boteler, con- 
senting to its publication. 



Hartford, February 20, 1860. 

My Dear Sir : I thank you earnestly for the letter of the last survivor of 
tliat patriot band who nobly marched from the Ancient Dominion to the 
aid of Massachusetts in 1775. It is indeed very kind of you to send me 
such a precious gift, which shall be preserved with my most treasured 
autographs. 

I recollect no incident in our Revolutionary history more graphic in its 
character than that with which you have so eloquently closed your speech 
of the 25th ultimo. The poem mentioned in your note is entirely at your 
disposal, and I am yours, with great respect, 

L. H. SIGOURNEY. 

Hon. Alex. R. Boteler, of Virginia. 



13 



AN INCIDENT OF 1775. 

BY L. H. S. 

A gathering in Virginia's vales, 

Mid summer's velvet green, 
Where fair Potomac sparkling flows 

Its fringed banks between ; 
For echoes from New England's hills 

Of strife and danger came. 
And Henry's eloquence had stirr'd 

Men's souls like living flame. 

Then from the throng, with patriot zeal, 

Stood forth a noble band 
Twice sixty dauntless volunteers 

Enlisted heart and hand ; 
Their's was no prompting thirst of fame! 

Of glittering gold no greed, 
" For Massachusetts! " was the cry, 

" For Boston! " in their need. 

And each to each a sacred vow 

Made mid the parting pain, 
When''fifty years away had sped 

To seek that spot again ; 
Those that the shaft of Death might spare, 

Beneath yon oak tree's shade. 
Should meet beside the diamond spring — 

Such solemn tryste they made. 

Oh ! there was sorrow 'neath the roof 

Of many a household tent. 
And burning tears fell thick and fast 

When from their homes they Avent ; 
But to their little ones they said. 

And bade them well take heed, 
^^ Heaven will not smile on those who fail 

To help their brother's need." 



14 



Hundreds of miles, o'rc rock and slone, 

Through forests' thorny breast, 
O'er bridgeless streams, o'er trackless wilds, 

With patient toil they prest. 
While ever in their secret soul 

Gleam'd an unfaltering- creed, 
Like pole-star of their weary course, 

" To help oitr brothers^ ?icer/." 

The king of men, oppress'd with care, 

Rode forth at closing day, 
And saw Virginia's armed host 

Approach in firm array. 
And knew the bearing of their Chief, 

Who, on the fatal plain. 
Had fought with him by Braddock's side 

When blood fell down like rain. 

Then, leaping from his lofty steed, 

He clasp'd him to his breast. 
And, one by one, each soldier's hand 

With greeting fervor prest. 
Why was the eye of AVashington 

SufTus'd with gushing tear? 
Why heav'd that hero's heart so high 

That never throbb'd with fear? 

He read God's blessing in the love 

Of that fraternal band ; ^ 

He mark'd the triumph through the gloom 

That wrapp'd an infant land ; 
Perchance, with his prophetic glance 

Who erst on Nebo stood, 
Beheld a glorious realm unfold 

Like rainbow o'er the flood. 

Years roU'd away, and lustrums fled, 

And half a century closed 
Its cycle, and, with swanlike dirge. 

Mid ages past reposed ; 
But, true to their remembered trysle, 

Potomac's veterans drew 
Where, by the oak-tree's gnarled roots, 

The spring fresh crystals threw. 



15 

They came — but not twice sixty men. 

In martial vigor bold ; 
For some their bleaching bones had laid 

On Northern hillocks cold. 
They came. Who came? Three aged forms, 

By time and changes bow'd ; 
Yet was no winter in their heart. 

Though snows their temples shroud. 

For power and wealth and honor blest 

'I*he Country of their birth, 
AVho proudly reared her starry crest 

Among the Queens of Earth ; 
And warmly rose their patriot prayer 

That long her sacred Ark, 
Immaculate, and angel-steer'd. 

Might ride the billows dark. 



From tho Kichmond Whig. 
••A BEE-LINE FOR BOSTON." 

BY A DAUGHTER OF VIRGINIA. 

When our tyrants sought to rob us of the freedom of our land, 

And the soil of Massachusetts with our brethren's blood was stained, 

Well we know how to the battle flocked New England's gallant sons. 

And how fast the British soldiers fell before their trusty guns. 

Away in fair Virginia, by Potomac's lordly stream, 

To the ears of loyal brothers swift their cry for vengeance came ; 

And 'twas hard by Harper's Ferry, at that cry a noble band 

Of our brave Virginians gathered, to do battle for the land. 

And 'twas in the homely language of the hardy pioneer, 

That " a bee-line now for Boston" rose as their rallying cheer. 

Ah ! their march was long and weary, but the goal was reached at length, 

Where the Continental army was mustered in its strength. 

When the Leader saw^ the linsey the Virginia soldiers wore, 

Then his spirit filled with gladness, /or he knew that cloth of yore, 

And he galloped up to meet them, but vainly strove to speak 

As he shook their hands in greeting, while tears bedewed his cheek. 




'Twas thus for our common countr;, 

But, O ! brothers of New England, 

When a band of vile marauders, in tl. 

Have conspired a plot to darken our h 

And when hard by Harper's Ferry they essayed the hellish deed. 

You forgot liow erst Virginia sent you succor in your need ; 

For when our would-be murderers to a lawful death were doomed, 

Fou cursed the destined victims, and for the traitors mourned. 

O ! beware how you would sever the band that makes us one. 

For the despots o'er the water would rejoice to see'it done. 

And Virginia hearts — though beating with their ancient love for you, 

And with fealty to the Union — must to themselves be true. 

But ah ! how in blood of brothers our right hands can be stain? 

And say, who can rend our banner of stars and stripes in twain? 

O ! may curses from high Heaven fall on each traitorous heart, 

That would lift a hand to sunder our blood-bought ties apart. 

E. E. S. 



